How to reach Leh Ladakh?

I am keen on finding out how to reach Leh Ladakh from Delhi? It is a far destination from Delhi and from what I know there are a few stopovers as well. I am not sure if there is a bus service from Delhi to Leh Ladakh, but we are not interested in traveling by bus due to the hilly area and curves.

We would prefer traveling by train, so please give information on reaching Leh Ladakh by train from Delhi.

You'd have to wait a couple of years for the railway lines to be built . You can either go by car or by plane. Or if you insist on travelling by train, then you'd have to take the train from Delhi to Jammu, and then from Jammu[which is 700 kms or 434 miles] you can take a cab. But, its not that fun. And you'd miss the beauty of the landscape travelling via train.
The Two Routes You Can Take

So, lets take a step back and cross the bridges when they come. Firstly, there are 2 main routes for Leh - one via Manali - Rohtang Pass and the other via the J and K route. The Manali route is what you should take because its the beautiful untouched route. Also, beyond Rohtang, the curves will get better and turn into a straight road as well. Also, you can get a med if you get sick while moving through hilly areas. So, pick your route carefully. Also, people usually go via the Manali route and then come back via the JnK route.

Best Season to Travel

The Best season to travel via the Manali route is during the summers. During the winters, the Rohtang pass usually closes. If by some magic you were able to get your vehicle on that road just before the road closes, you'd likely have to be rescued by the army. Since you'd likely be snowed in. This happens with some people every year when the route is about to be close.

How To Get There

Now, lets say you want to travel via the Manali route. Hire a cab from Delhi to Manali OR take a flight from Delhi to Manali. From there onwards, you will have to take a local cab because those people have the most experience travelling through the route. IF you don't want to take a cab, you can always take the tourist buses.

In case you decide to take the JnK route, its again the same thing. Take a cab or tourist bus from Delhi.

You can break the journey into stages. First, go from Del to Manali. Stay there, enjoy the weather, the Israeli company, the river rafting, etc. Then, once you're well rested, take the next part of the journey on. But, take the road route. I mean how can you not take the road on such a beautiful route:

As what have been mentioned, there are two routes that you can take to reach Ladakh from Delhi. The first one is via Srinagar and the second route is via Manali. Since you're interested in the train journey, that is going to be my focus.

1. Train from Delhi to Ladakh via Srinagar

You can reach Jammu from Delhi and from there, ride a bus going to Srinagar and another bus to Ladakh. So your route would be:

Delhi > Train to Jammu > Bus to Srinagar > Bus to Ladakh.

There are about 25 trains available from Delhi to Jammu. Journey time would be around 10 hours to 15 hours. Not all trains depart daily though so check the schedules of the trains carefully. Here are some of their timings:

Daily Trains

Jhelum Express Train No. 11077 - This departs daily from Subzi Mandi at 21:21 and arrives in Jammu at 10:05.

Jammu Mail Train No. 14033 - This departs daily from New Delhi at 20:10 and arrives in Jammu at 9:25.

Jammu Rajdhani Express Train No. 12425 - This departs daily from New Delhi at 20:40 and arrives in Jammu at 5:45.

Uttar Sampark Kranti Express Train No. 12445 - This departs daily from New Delhi at 20:50 and arrives in Jammu at 6:35.

Malwa Express Train No. 12919 - This departs daily from New Delhi at 5:20 and arrives in Jammu at 16:10.

Shalimar Express Train No. 14645 - This departs daily from New Delhi at 15:50 and arrives in Jammu at 5:25.

Sri Shakti Express Train No. 22461 - This departs daily from New Delhi at 17:30 and arrives in Jammu at 3:00.

By Schedule Trains

Jammu Tawi Express Train No. 11449 - This departs during Wednesdays from Okhla at 22:07 and arrives in Jammu at 13:00.

Andaman Express Train No. 16031 - This departs during Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays from Okhla at 22:07 and arrives in Jammu at 13:00.

Himsagar Express Train No. 16317 - This departs during Mondays from Shakurbasti at 00:46 and arrives in Jammu at 13:00.

Navyug Express Train No. 16687 - This departs during Thursdays from Shakurbasti at 00:46 and arrives in Jammu at 13:00.

Tirunelveli Jammu Express Train No. 16787 - This departs during Monday and Thursdays from Shakurbasti at 00:46 and arrives in Jammu at 13:00.

Kota SVDK Express Train No. 19803 - This departs during Sundays from New Delhi at 00:10 and arrives in Jammu at 13:00.

Swaraj Express Train No. 12471 - This departs during Mondays, Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays from New Delhi at 4:50 and arrives in Jammu at 14:40.

From Jammu, you can ride a bus going to Srinagar. Here are their timings:

Jamna Travels India (Non-AC Seater/Sleeper Bus) - Departs at 10:00 pm from Jammu and arrives in Srinagar at 8:00 am. Fare is at Rs. 500 to Rs. 700 per passenger. This bus departs from the KC Chowk, BC Road in Jammu.

Moonlight Travels Katra (AC Sleeper) - Departs at 10:15 pm from Jammu and arrives in Srinagar at 6:30 am. Fare is at Rs. 899 per passenger. This bus departs from the Trikuta Shopping Complex.

From Srinagar, you'd have to ride another bus going to Ladakh. There is only bus daily which departs from the Tourist Reception Centre, near Dal Lake in Srinagar. It is operated by the JKSRTC, here is the timing:

JKSRTC Bus (Non AC Seater/Sleeper Bus) - This departs everyday from Srinagar at 8:00 am. It then takes a stopover in Kargil which is for the night. The bus resumes its service the next day. Journey duration is around two days. Fare is at Rs. 470 to Rs. 1,058 per passenger.

2. Train from Delhi to Ladakh via Manali

There are three railway stations that are nearest to Manali. Let's begin with Una Railway Station, the nearest station to Manali at about 250 kilometres away. So your route would be:

Chandigarh Express Train No. 19307 - Departs during Fridays from Delhi at 1:40 and arrives at 6:455 in Chandigarh.

From Chandigarh, you need to ride a bus to reach Manali. Here are some bus timings:

HRTC Bus - The Volvo HRTC Bus leaves at 8:40 pm and fare is at Rs. 854 per passenger. The Ordinary HRTC Bus leaves at 6:40 pm and fare is at Rs. 449 per passenger. These buses depart from the ISBT Bus Stand in Sector 43.

Private Bus - There are also plenty of buses plying this route. The New Himalaya Travels has a Volvo AC Semi-Sleeper Bus and it leaves at 11:15 pm. It arrives in Manali at 7:30 am. Fare is at Rs. 950 per passenger. The Swagatam Holidays has a Volvo AC Seater/Sleeper Bus and it leaves at 11:45 pm. It arrives in Manali at 7:30 am. Fare is at Rs. 950 per passenger. The Laxmi Holidays has a Volvo AC Seater Bus and it leaves at 11:45 pm. It arrives in Manali at 8:10 am. Fare is at Rs. 799 per passenger.

Then, from Manali, you have the same bus timing as above.

There's a last train option which goes from Pathankot to Joginder Nagar Railway Station. However, you need to reach Pathankot from Delhi first and then, ride a train from there to Joginder Nagar. This is a narrow gauge train line so it can be very slow. I won't recommend this route as it is time consuming and tiring.